An Upshur County Sheriff’s Office deputy and three New Diana ISD employees were honored earlier this week for their efforts in performing the Heimlich maneuver to save a 4-year-old girl that was choking in the school cafeteria on May 1.

According to a post on the Upshur County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page, Deputy Clay Robertson was working as the school resource officer for the New Diana Elementary school on May 1. Around 11 a.m., students were eating in the lunch room.

“A teacher who was monitoring the children noticed a 4-year-old Pre-K student having trouble breathing,” the Facebook post stated. “The child was able to indicate to the teacher that she could not breathe due to something lodged in her throat.”

The post stated that the teacher started performing the Heimlich maneuver on the little girl. At that point, another teacher tried to help, but they were unable to dislodge the object in the girl’s throat.

“One of the teachers picked up the student and started running to the nurse’s office,” the Facebook post stated. “The teacher and child passed Deputy Robertson, and he followed them to the nurse’s office. When they arrived, Deputy Robertson successfully performed the Heimlich maneuver while another teacher did a finger sweep clearing the child’s mouth of the object.”

The little girl was able to start breathing again, and no other medical treatment was needed.

On May 15, Robertson was honored with the Life-Saving Award at Tuesday’s commissioners court meeting. Yesterday, Kerry Krienke, a teacher, Britney

Reavis, an educational aide, and Thressa Lloyd, an educational aide, were each given the Sheriff’s Star Award.